What is the right POSITION mix?

[John Doe]

There is constant speculation as to how many players will be kept at a certain postion on the 53-man roster. Four running backs? Six wide recievers? Five safties? All you have to do is to look at the mix from last year to see what the philosophy of the front office is.

There are only 53 slots on the roster. Start out by dedicating one spot for a place kicker, one for a punter, and one for the third QB - these are basic assumptions for any team. That leaves 50 spots for the rest of the squad. Also assume a balance for offence and defense - 25 per side. Now we can start our basic analysis by assuming (for the time being) that there are two players for every one of the 11 positions on each side of the ball. That would be 22 men per side, leaving only three spots per side for an extra man at certain postions.

On offense these 3 extra spots are usually allocated as follows: tight end, wide reciever, and running back (remember that QB is already covered). Some teams that run a two-tight end set or an "H-back" set a majority of the time can do with only one fullback. There are some running backs that can play fullback as well, but there are usually no more that five positions slotted between the running back and full back spots combined. The offensive line can do without the extra man, and in some cases, it can do with nine spots instead of ten. There is the possibility that one of the O-line spots is occupied by a dedicated "long snapper" unless one of the other linemen or a tight-end can do the job. If there is no dedicated long-snapper and there are a few linemen who can play more than position, it is possible to get along with only nine, and that would free up a spot for an extra man at another postion on the offense. Last year, the Bills went with into the season with 10 on the line and the long snapper was a tight end.

In the case of a 4/3 defense, the 3 extra spots are usually allocated as follows: cornerback, linebacker, and one lineman. Last year, the lineman was a tackle. Typically, a big linebacker or a quick tackle can fill in at defensive end for added depth at that spot. One of the linebacking spots usually goes to a good special teams player. A team usually carries five corners in case of injury and for "dime" packages. The strongest corner can usually fill in at a saftey spot in a pinch. It is usually much harder for a saftey to fill in at the corner.

Thus, the mix for a Bills' team with a 4/3 defense and a standard offense is as follows:

3 QB's
3 Running Backs
2 Full Backs
5 Wide Receivers
3 Tight Ends
10 Offensive Linemen

4 Defensive Ends
5 Definsive Tackles
7 Linebackers
4 Safties
5 Corners

2 Kickers

This is mix is not set in stone, but it is highly probable based on how the team was put together last year.

[northernbillfan]

Good work John Doe. That was well thought out.

It kind of gives us perspective on who is disposable for the final roster.

You should submit your story to the board editor us@billszone.com

[lordofgun]

Great analysis Mr. Doe!

[TigerJ]

Your reasoning is all sound, John Doe. In the case of the Bills, the long snapper will also be a TE. I think O'Leary, McConnell, and Moore have all taken snaps as a long snapper. The fullback slot presents an interesting dillemma. Centers starts. He's an unconventional FB (not a great lead blocker, but is a great safety valve receiver). The only true blocker is Crosby, but he doesn't do much else. Jarret Feguson is probably a lot like Centers and is, IMHO, destined for the practice squad. Might the Bills use 4 RBs since the have three RBs who have lined up at FB at one time or other either in their college career or as a pro. Morris, Bryson, and Huntley all have good size and have played FB, though none is the blocker that Crosby is.

On the defensive side, I'm in perfect agreement, though probably one or more of the linemen may be seen as available to move around on the line (i.e. Robertson has been tried some at DE, Price also has played some DE. As John lists it, teams are more inclined to keep 5 CBs and 4 safeties rather than vice versa because CBs are regarded as having better cover skills. You can usually take a CB with a little size and teach him to play some safety, but you may not be able to teach a safety to play the CB position.